Fallout
by spitfire2962
Summary: A series of drabbles that take place after the defeat of the witch. Chapter four- Blame it on DG.
1. What DG didn't expect

Disclaimer- I do not own the Tin Man series nor any of it's characters and I am not making any money from this story. Note- Most of these drabbles will be part of the "Unexpected" series, but from time to time I might throw some in there that aren't. There will be a note at the top to let you know. Also, these will not all be from DG's point-of-view, I plan on varying it.

* * *

Although DG had a long history of not thinking about the consequences of her actions, there were a few things she had expected to happen after defeating the witch. She knew she would be a princess, but not quite just how much **work** that would entail. She expected Az to need some time to learn how to be herself again without the witch's presence, but not to be the depressed creature that virtually locked herself in her room and refused to see anyone but for a very few select people (the last she knew Glitch had even volunteered to come up with a secret password for her to ask any would be visitors). DG had known that it would be hard for people to accept Az, contrary to popular belief DG was naïve, but not **that** much. However, she did not expect one of those people to be their mother.

Lavender didn't say anything unkind to Az or avoid looking her in the eye as some others did. There was no outward sign of hesitation when she touched her, but to those who were close there was a coolness, a distance that should never be between mother and daughter. DG hadn't discussed it with anyone yet, but she knew the others saw it. It was there in the sadness lurking in Ahamo's eyes whenever he looked at his wife or eldest daughter.

Even more than Lavender's distance, the thing DG had least expected were the two men who supported Az the most, after herself and Ahamo, the Cain men. They were the first to volunteer to protect her and one of them was often found by her side. DG had questioned Glitch about it once. He'd followed her gaze to where Az and Jeb were walking in the distance and had replied, "Why not? Out of all of us they should understand what it's like to be trapped in your own mind." Then with a flashing smile and a wave of his hands he'd turned his attention back to her, "What do you think about using amaranthine, it could be a tribute to the Queen's eyes, or maybe something more irrelative, like limicolous? Perhaps we could even do a rotation. I wonder where Raw is…" and before she could even nod her head he was turned around and off in the other direction talking to himself, presumably in search of Raw, while she'd continued to stare after Az and her escort.

Now as DG held her sister after her latest nightmare and watched Cain stare out the dark windows, she rather thought that made sense after all.


	2. Charm isn't everything

Disclaimer- I do not own the Tin Man series nor any of it's characters and I am not making any money from this story. Note- Really I have no good excuse for taking so long to upload this. All I can say is I'm sorry and I'll try to get the next one out sooner. Thanks to Amanda for beta'ing this for me and any reviews/comments would be helpful. Enjoy!

…...

Ahamo had the way of a natural born charmer. While most of it was subconsciously done, Ahamo was also aware of that fact. It was exactly because he knew how easily a charming word could come that he put the most stock in a person's actions. That was why when Lavender was having problems with her second pregnancy that he used his status as a jack of all trades to build her the gazebo she would come to love, and why he so treasured the figures that his daughters had made him as children.

This would be why he was currently up on a ladder painting a sunrise on Azkadellia's ceiling and hoping he would finish before the rather rickety ladder either gave out on him or DG and Glitch ran out of ways to divert Az. Of course, he had also given orders to both of the Cains to detain Azkadellia from her rooms before he was finished and should DG fail he had the utmost faith that they at least would succeed.

His daughter's constant and unforgiving nightmares broke his heart and had motivated him towards his current, and rather shaky, predicament. He wanted her to be able to look above her in the night and see not the face of the witch, but the beginning of a new day. He had even talked DG into placing a spell on the mural that would cause the sun to give off a faint glow, so that even on the deepest night Az would not wake in darkness.

He knew that it would take time to heal his Azkadellia, but at least he could offer a physical reminder that the Light had won and she was her own.


	3. A Mother's Lullaby

Disclaimer- I do not own the Tin Man series nor any of it's characters and I am not making any money from this story.

Note- So this isn't what I intended on writing at all, but I ended up really liking it. Hopefully, you will too.

…

Azkadellia was having trouble sleeping, again. Voices were crowding in her head, pleading, screaming, and crying. All against the backdrop of the witches taunting laughter and blurry nightmare images that kept shifting, a disturbing kaleidoscope that left her feeling restless and lost. She couldn't help feeling that if she could just bring one of the painful scenes into focus that maybe she could change it, fight off the witch, help the voices that rang with pain and horror, but the nightmare remained unchanged and refused to release her as she tossed and turned.

Just as she was beginning to think that there would never be anything but this constant barrage of pain and crushing guilt, a gentle hum began somewhere in the background of the dream. Gradually it rose above the rest of the voices, a melody that was infinitely different from the rest. She struggled to hold on as it got clearer.

It was a lullaby. One that you would sing to a small child, something that spoke of the all encompassing compassion in a mother's love. The nightmare faded softly and the voices went silent as it's soothing tones continued to gently rise and fall until nothing remained but the comforting nothingness of true sleep.

…

Outside the dream, a light breeze ruffled the curtains as the moonlight reached through the windows to illuminate the woman sitting next to the bed. Her face spoke of sorrow and worry while her shoulders drooped with weariness. The hand she reached across the bed shook with quiet tremors as it hovered over the now serene sleeper. A low sigh escaped her as her hand pulled back inches from touching the princess. A hushed whisper emerged before she slowly rose from the chair and left for her own bed.

"Sweet dreams my Dellia."


	4. Blame it on DG

Disclaimer- I do not own the Tin Man series nor any of it's characters and I am not making any money from this story.

Note- So if I have any readers left after how long I've been gone, I present the overdue result of the Christmas prompt I was given. The prompt was "mistletoe" and I hope you like it. Thanks to my betas! Reviews are like Ben and Jerry's icecream, except better! :)

...

It was all DG's fault. Azkadellia was sure of it. She'd thought of little else for the past hour, but of how much DG was to blame for her current situation. Az knew from experience that her sister very seldom thought out the consequences of her actions. There were many examples of this, and as annoyed as Az was she knew this latest one didn't even begin to "take the cake" as DG would put it.

So really Az should have known how DG's latest attempt to bring some of her favorite Otherside traditions to the OZ was going to turn out. Mainly that it would result in her being stuck in a rarely used hallway underneath a piece of what her sister had called mistletoe, because DG had actually remembered she possessed magic and enchanted the blasted thing. She claimed that she'd read it somewhere on the Otherside. Something about "fan fiction" and "Weasly Twins", though in Ozma's name she had no idea what that meant.

She supposed in a rather twisted way it made sense that she would get caught under the only one her mother and Glitch had missed when removing all the others, after several complaints. After all, Azkadellia was usually the one getting in trouble for DG's schemes. Now, if it wasn't for the fact that she had been stuck for over an hour with absolutely nothing to look at but the wall (why couldn't she have been stuck by a window at least?) then maybe she wouldn't have come up with more than fifty ways in which to reek her vengeance on DG. The majority of them didn't even involve using her magic. She would have come up with more already, but she was determined that each one would be as detailed as possible.

She was working on number fifty-one when the sound of footsteps came from behind her.

"Your mother wants you, Princess, and I'm not some damn messenger with nothing better to do than track down you and your sister. Why are you even in this part of the palace? Was someone causing you trouble?" a very familiar and very male voice asked.

"Oh no, nothing wrong" Az said lightly, a rather cunning smile gracing her lips as she realized her freedom was at hand. She kept her back to him as she spoke so he wouldn't guess her plan.

"Then what…mmf" she had a brief moment to think of how nice his lips felt against her own before she felt the spell dissolve and she was off to seek her revenge.

It wasn't until she was already around the corner that he noticed she had taken his gun, and it was a second after that before he realized that was a very Bad Thing.

"Hell".


End file.
